Tuesday, June 28, 2011

Liz Brewer, Ita Buttrose & International Terrorists

Madame Aracti has drawn our attention to a new book published in the UK by one of that countries top public relations experts Liz Brewer.

Liz was once married to Australian John Rendell of Christian The Lion fame and is the mother of chanteuse and songwriter Tallulah Rendell who wowed audiences in Sydney recently. She was also one of the hosts on the reality TV show Aussie Ladette To Lady where she attempted to convert a bunch of rough and tumble young girls into genteel lasses, suitable enough to mingle with the more refined classes .

Ms Brewer has just published a new book Ultimate Guide to Party Planning & Etiquette which is flying off British book shelves in a country where trying to keep up the standards expected is becoming increasingly difficult in the new 'chav' culture sweeping that great isle.

And Liz knows her stuff having organised some of the top bashes in London for celebrities like Shirley Bassey and Ivana Trump. She's been around celebrities and high society for most of her career that began on the Algarve in Portugal when she opened a nightclub and attracted big names like Paul McCartney and Cliff Richard.

But we also have our own tome - the recently published colonial version :AGuide to Australian Etiquette-for all occasions, from weddings to workby publishing icon Ita Buttrose who was featured in the TV drama Paper Giants-The Birth of Cleo that depicted the 1970's when Kerry Packer lost the contract to publish a local version of Cosmopolitan and instead, under the auspices of Buttrose came up with the top selling magazine Cleo that has been going gangbusters ever since.

Ita Buttrose &Betty Churcher at the B &W lunch

Ita was a special guest at the Black & White Charity lunch last Tuesday which featured Dame Edna Everage who reminded the audience and Ita that it was her on the 1974 cover that rocketed Cleo to a staggering circulation of nearly half a million copies although it was Ita's idea to feature, for the first time, a man in a dress as she reminded the Dame.

Cleo-1974

Dame Edna retorted that she had no idea who Ita was at the time and thought her name was a reference to an International Terrorist group.

Both books are required reading if one is to attempt climbing the social ladder in either capitals and from Liz Brewer's interview on Madame Arcati we learn both cities suffer from similar problems. Like the eternal gatecrasher. Liz gives some handy hints to seeing them off and we feel concurs with our view of the local half dozen who plague events here - if they bring nothing to the event in appearance, manners, humour or intellect, what's the point of them ?.

But back to Ita's guide to surviving the sophistication of Australian culture. There are many crossover areas in both Liz Brewer's book and Ita's but the local version give us some much needed tips with a local flavour :

don't let your dog jump in a pond especially if there is green algae !

don't pig out on bread at the dinner table and leave only crumbs

urinating in public is revolting

spitting in public is uncivilised ...and so on.

Ita also gives some helpful advice on weddings : what to do when the best man is a woman, how to dress for a Muslim wedding, what to do when you run into your ex ! and a host of veritable survival hints even at the football : no player should ever pretend to be their best mate in an attempt to have sex with another player's wife : if a girl has had too much too drink it's best to call a taxi to take her homeand most importantly : you never watch a player's mate and his girlfriend having sex!